The Name’s Bond, James Bond
‘Bond, James Bond’ is one of the most famous lines in cinematic history and something all Bond fans look out for when there’s a new release of the latest Bond movie.
The immortal introduction has been used in nearly every Bond movie, and pretty much everyone knows the name James Bond. He has become a true icon of pop culture, captivating audiences for six decades and counting with his daring adventures and sophisticated wit.
But who is this legendary character? In this blog post we’ll explore the history of James Bond, his literary origins as well as how he has been portrayed on screen over the years by some of Hollywood’s finest actors.
So if you’re curious about the man behind the code name 007, buckle up and join us on this journey of discovering one of cinema’s most beloved characters.
Bond, James Bond
James Bond is a fictional British Secret Service agent, whose code name is 007, was created by novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. Fleming wrote and published 12 novels and 2 short story collections before he passed away in 1964.
Since Fleming’s death, 8 other authors have penned Bond novels, with the latest novel Forever And a Day published in May 2018 by Anthony Horowitz.
So far, there have been 25 James Bond movies played by 6 different actors. The latest Bond movie No Time To Die was released in 2021 with Daniel Craig making his final appearance as the Secret Service agent.
The immortal introduction
‘Bond James Bond,’ is one of the most famous lines in any movies and it has been said 24 times throughout the movie series.
The name James Bond sounds as cool as ice, but that was far from Ian Fleming’s idea. The author chose the name because as he said James Bond was the dullest name he could think of.
‘I wanted Bond to be an extremely dull, uninteresting man to whom things happened. I wanted him to be a blunt instrument.’ How ironic!
He took the name from one of the books he used to read a lot as a kid – ‘Birds of the West Indies,’ by ornithologist James Bond, and Fleming later admitted he’d made what he thought of as a dull name ‘an exciting one’.
‘Bond, James Bond.’ I wonder if the ornithologist ever said that!
Ironically, the scene almost never happened. At the time Sean Connery was said to be nervous and couldn’t get his lines out. So, producer Terence Young told co-star Eunice Gayson to take him for a few alcoholic drinks to calm him down.
She did, they did and the rest, as they say, is history.
List of James Bond Movies
Since the first Bon movie Dr. No premiered in 1962 by the young Sean Connery there has been 24 others with the latest one released in 2021.
Here’s a list of James Bond movies in chronological order…
Bond Movies
| Franchise | Movies | Bond Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Bond 1 | Dr. No (1962) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 2 | From Russia with Love (1963) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 3 | Goldfinger (1964) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 4 | Thunderball (1965) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 5 | You Only Live Twice (1967) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 6 | On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) | George Lazenby |
| Bond 7 | Diamonds Are Forever (1971) | Sean Connery |
| Bond 8 | Live and Let Die (1973) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 9 | The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 10 | The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 11 | Moonraker (1979) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 12 | For Your Eyes Only (1981) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 13 | Octopussy (1983) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 14 | A View to a Kill (1985) | Roger Moore |
| Bond 15 | The Living Daylights (1987) | Timothy Dalton |
| Bond 16 | Licence to Kill (1989) | Timothy Dalton |
| Bond 17 | GoldenEye (1995) | Pierce Brosnan |
| Bond 18 | Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) | Pierce Brosnan |
| Bond 19 | The World Is Not Enough (1999) | Pierce Brosnan |
| Bond 20 | Die Another Day (2002) | Pierce Brosnan |
| Bond 21 | Casino Royale (2006) | Daniel Craig |
| Bond 22 | Quantum of Solace (2008) | Daniel Craig |
| Bond 23 | Skyfall (2012) | Daniel Craig |
| Bond 24 | Spectre (2015) | Daniel Craig |
| Bond 25 | No Time To Die (2021) | Daniel Craig |
The famous 007 quote ‘Bond, James Bond,’ was first used by actor Sean Connery in the first Bond movie Dr. No. The immortal introduction is part of the iconic casino scene where he introduces himself to Sylvia Trench during a game of Baccarat.
After losing a hand, frustrated Trench tells the porter she needs more money. Bond looks up surprised at her determination, and he and Trench have their first chat.
The iconic introduction is then first used as Bond repeats the way Trench introduces herself, and he famously lights his cigarette as he introduces himself.
‘I admire your courage, Miss…?’
‘Trench. Sylvia Trench. I admire your luck, Mr…?’
‘Bond. James Bond.’
Watch the iconic Bond, James Bond introduction
The scene is arguably the most mimicked scene of all time as Connery introduced the name of the Secret Service Agent for the first time.
James Bond Actors
The name’s Bond, James Bond has been portrayed by 6 different actors. Sean Connery first played James Bond and starred in the first 5 Bond films, but then made way for George Lazenby who starred in the 1969 On Her majesty’s Secret Service.
Then after a one-movie sabbatical Connery returned for the next Bond movie – Diamonds Are Forever (1971), making his sixth and final appearance as the womanizing and sophisticated secret agent.
For the next 12 years Bond was played by Roger Moore whose first movie was Live and Let Die (1973) before hanging up his gun in A View to a Kill (1985).
Timothy Dalton was the next Bond to take over, but after starring in The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence To Kill (1989), Dalton had to cut short his Bond career after a lawsuit prevented him from starring in a third.
The James Bond series then took a break as the next movie wasn’t released until Goldeneye (1995) and the fifth Bond, James Bond – Pierce Brosnan was introduced to Bond fans. Brosnan starred in three more Bond movies, his last being Die Another Day in 2002.
The latest Bond, Daniel Craig, was first introduced to Bond fans in 2006 in Casino Royale, a movie that moved away from the typical Bond theme.
Since then, Craig has starred in four other Bond movies with No Time To Die (2021) being his last, and now we are left wondering who the next Bond will be.
In No Time to Die we saw a female 007 played by actress Lashana Lynch, but of course she wasn’t Bond. But with Daniel Craig finishing up as Bond, who will the next one be?
There are rumours for the next Bond with some saying Tom Hardy, Henry Cavill and Aaron Taylor-Johnson now leading the betting. But there might be a move away from white male, and British actor Idris Elba is being touted as the next Bond. We wait in anticipation.
Bond, James Bond – Do you like my collections?
One thing James Bond movies are famous for is his collection of gadgets, cars, guns, and erm women.
James Bond Cars
James Bond is synonymous with Aston Martin cars and the DB5 especially, but Bond has driven many different cars, and of course they’re all cool, head turners.
Bond was first spotted in a “not-so-flashy-car” – the Sunbeam Alpine Series II. At least at the time it wasn’t a flash car, or at least not as flash as the DB5, but a well-maintained Sunbeam Alpine classic car is now worth about $30,000.
The Alpine is a British made sports car that was used in the first movie Dr. No and also featured in the eponymous novel as it was a personal car of John Strangways, the actual head of MI6 in Jamaica.
In the movie Dr. No, the head of MI6 was shot by ‘Three Blind Mice’ as he was getting into his Sunbeam Alpine. The ‘Three Blind Mice’ were later revealed to be assassins for global terrorist organization SPECTRE.
The Aston Martin DB5 is the car people think of when they think of 007. After appearing in it in Goldfinger (1964), it quickly became a favorite with boys and girls the world over. That year, the Corgi model car became the biggest selling toy of the year.
Bond was also spotted in the same car in the following 007 movie, Thunderball (1965). The car looks cool, but it is arguably as famous for its cool gadgets, which include the ejector seat, machine guns and tire slashers.
Since then, then an Aston Martin DB5 has also featured in Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, Casino Royale and most famously Skyfall.
Talking of gadgets, no Bond car was as fit with life-saving, and killing, gadgets as the Lotus Esprit S1, which Bond happily got to grips with in The Sy Who Loved Me (1977).
In a classic car chase scene in the movie, Bond was chased on land by a jet propelled motorbike and sidecar and a car with henchment and one of Bond’s greatest villains – Jaws.
The land chase was only the beginning as Bond and his lady friend Barbara Bach finally lost their pursuers, the were then chased by a machine gun layered helicopter.
Driving the Lotus Esprit, Bond was driven off the edge of a cliff. But of course that wasn’t the end of Bond, or the classic car, as it turned into a mini submarine, equipped with a seat-to-air missile of course, which subsequently wiped out the helicopter.
The enemy weren’t finished, however, as they sent armed frogmen, and missile-equipped submarines to finish Bond off. Luckily, James had the Esprit and saw them off before driving out of the sea and onto a beach as the car became a car again.
There have been many cars throughout the franchise, with Aston Martin DBS in On Her Majesty’s Service, and the V8 Vantage Volante in The Living Daylights among many classic cars driven by Bond over the decades.
Bond Guns
The name’s Bond, James Bond, and I like guns, a lot. James Bond and guns go hand-in-hand, and even silhouettes of him usually have him holding a pistol up by the side of his face.
Of course, being an MI6 agent, he’s required to shoot a lot of people and some of the guns in the movies have been spectacular. Some of guns out to kill him are just as inventive, too.
James Bond and the Walther PPK are synonymous. It might not be the most exciting gun with any special gadgets, but the semi-automatic pistol is his favourite gun and has killed most people.
The reason Bond uses a PPK is because Ian Fleming was convinced by a Bond fan who just happened to be a firearms expert. Geoffrey Boothroyd was an avid reader of the Bond novels, but wrote a letter to Fleming telling him that Bond’s gun – the Beretta 418 – wasn’t suitable and instead should use a Walther PPK.
Fleming got in touch with Boothroyd, discussed it more, and changed from then onwards. You may notice the name Boothroyd, who is the firemarms and gadget expert in the early Bond movies, and later changed name to Q.
Fleming included him in the movies paying homage to the firearms expert, and at the start of Dr. No when Boothroyd is explaining the qualities of the PPK is based on what he said to Fleming.
One of the best guns Bond has used was in Licence to Kill (1989). In the movie, Bond has to go rogue after having his 007 status and licence to kill stripped for killing a drug lord.
Q, always on Bond’s side even if he gets nervous about Bond’s antics, loads 007 up with a Signature Camera Gun, which as you guessed it is disguised as a camera.
The gun can only be fired by Bond thanks to the fingerprint recognition mechanism and releasing a .220 high-velocity rounds which are well-suited for assassination jobs, and of course the gun does the trick.
Going back a decade, James Bond gets to grips with even stranger guns in Moonraker (1979). During the age of the Cold War and the space race, Moonraker is partially set in out of this world.
That’s right, Bond has to go into space to stop Hugo Drax from committing genocide. Set in space, Moonraker was the most advanced Bond film to date as were the guns.
The laser guns used in the film were actually designed on real world the IMI Uzi gun, but true to Hollywood, or should that be Pinewood Studios, the laser guns used weren’t real Uzis but instead toys.
Probably the most famous gun in any Bond movie is the golden gun used by one of Bond’s most famous villains Scaramanga in the Man With the Golden Gun (1974).
It isn’t modelled on any real-life gun but the iconic gun has become legendary with Bond movie fans.
Made up of an interlocking fountain pen, cigarette lighter, cigarette case, and a cufflink for the trigger, the gun is used by Scaramanga to assassinate many people including officials, political enemies, gangsters, and an MI6 agent.
Another iconic gun Bond uses is the speargun in Thunderball (1965). Getting into an underwater tussle with Spectre, Bond needs a Spear Gun for the first of many times throughout the movie franchise, and as with all guns, uses it expertly well.
Bond Girls
‘Bond, James Bond,’ has to be one of the smoothest and shortest chat up lines, but somehow it works for 007. Although, he’s no doubt helped by his well-known sophistication and debonair charm that emanates from his every exchange with the opposite sex.
Of any character throughout history, James Bond has bedded some of the most beautiful, and sometimes dangerous women on the planet. And the best thing, for James Bond especially, is that more beautiful actresses would love to become the next Bond Girl.
As mentioned above, the first ever time we see Bond he is flirting with Sylvia Trench in the casino in one of the opening scenes of Dr. No. And of course, this sets the tone for the Secret Agent’s philandering ways.
One of the most classic Bond moments of any Bond movie is in Dr. No and it’s not Bond, but Bond girl Honey Ryder.
Played by Swiss actress Ursula Andress, Honey Ryder famously walks out of the Caribbean sea wearing a white bikini and a hunting knife by her side.
Bond is watching from behind some trees, while the stunning Bond girl compares a couple of shells, before the Secret Agent surprises her by singing along with her.
The scene had apparently “terrified” Connery, who needed a few alcoholic beverages to pluck up the courage to act it out. It’s said that the bikini worn by Honey Ryder is worth $500,000.
The scene and the part she played quickly made Ursula Andress a star among the cinema goers, who were to become Bond fans over the decades.
That scene was also recreated by Halle Berry in Die Another Day (2002). Berry played NSA agent Giacinta ‘Jinx’ Johnson, and she famously walks out of the sea in Cuba and into bed with Pierce Brosnan, who was playing Bond for the fourth and final time.
Another Bond Girl that ranks high with all Bond fans is Pussy Galore in the Goldfinger cast. The evocatively named Bond girl was an original character in Ian Fleming’s eponymous novel, and as well as running a flying circus of female pilots, hired by Goldfinger, she became another of Bond’s short stays as the couple had sex in Goldfinger’s barn.
There have been Bond Girls throughout the whole franchise with some of the most beautiful woman playing the roles. Tatiana Romanava, a Soviet officer ended up in bed with Bond in From Russia with Love, was played by Italian former Miss Universe contestant Daniela Bianchi.
Sylvia Trench was the first Bond girl of course, and she also appeared in the second movie. She’s not the only one to appear more than once, as Martine Beswick first appeared in the same film From Russia with Love, playing Zora at a gypsy camp, where she had to fight another girl, Vida to death over a man. Beswick later appeared in Thunberball, this time as Paula Caplan was Bond’s liaison in Nassau.
Bond, James Bond
James Bond has been a staple part of the cinema diet for over six decades now. We’ve seen six James Bonds, and many more villains, girls and other characters.
From the first film Dr. No to No Time to Die in 2021 we have seen Bond travel the world, enjoy some of the most amazing cars, guns and gadgets as he puts the world to rights and brings down the empires of some of the world’s biggest megalomaniacs.
James Bond might be in his seventh decade, but here’s to many more, shaken not stirred of course.
